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South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball facts for kids

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South Carolina Gamecocks
2023–24 South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team
South Carolina Gamecocks logo.svg
University University of South Carolina
All-time record 1020–535 (.656)
Athletic director Ray Tanner
Head coach Dawn Staley (16th season)
Conference SEC
Location Columbia, South Carolina
Arena Colonial Life Arena
(Capacity: 18,000)
Nickname Gamecocks
Student section The Cockpit
Colors Garnet and Black
         
Uniforms
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Home jersey
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Team colours
Home
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Away jersey
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Team colours
Away
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Alternate jersey
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Team colours
Alternate
NCAA Tournament Champions
2017, 2022, 2024
NCAA Tournament Final Four
2015, 2017, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
NCAA Tournament Elite Eight
2002, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
NCAA Tournament Sweet Sixteen
1982, 1990, 2002, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
NCAA Tournament Second round
1982, 1988, 1990, 2002, 2003, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
NCAA Tournament Appearances
1982, 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 2002, 2003, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024
AIAW Tournament Final Four
1980
AIAW Tournament Elite Eight
1980
AIAW Tournament Sweet Sixteen
1980
AIAW Tournament Appearances
1973, 1980
Conference Tournament Champions
Metro Conference: 1986, 1988, 1989
SEC: 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2023, 2024
Conference Regular Season Champions
Metro Conference: 1986, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991
SEC: 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024

The South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team represents the University of South Carolina and competes in the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Under current head coach Dawn Staley, the Gamecocks have been one of the top programs in the country, winning the NCAA Championship in 2017, 2022, and 2024. The program also enjoyed success under head coach Nancy Wilson during the 1980s in the Metro Conference, when it won five regular season conference championships and three conference tournament championships.

History

The Gamecocks first competed at an intercollegiate level in women's basketball in 1923, when they were called the Pullets (a young domestic hen, a play off "Gamecocks," which is a rooster).

The modern era of South Carolina women's basketball began when the Carolina Chicks took to the court in January 1974 under the guidance of Pam Backhaus. The inaugural team compiled a record of 15–7 and were the South Carolina AIAW champions. In 1977, with Pam Parsons as the head coach the women's basketball team, they changed their nickname to the Lady Gamecocks and made postseason trips every year during her four-year tenure.

During its eight seasons in the Metro Conference (now Conference USA after the 1995 reunification), the Lady Gamecocks won the regular season championship five times and the conference tournament three times.

When South Carolina joined the SEC, success was hard to come by during their first decade in one of the strongest conferences in women's basketball. They initially struggled to compete under head coaches Nancy Wilson and Susan Walvius. Walvius' teams in 2001–02 and 2002–03 broke through to finish 25–7 and 23–8, respectively, earning trips to the NCAA tournament and reaching the Elite Eight in 2002.

Walvius resigned after the 2007–08 season. On May 7, 2008, Dawn Staley was named the new head coach of the team now known as simply the "Gamecocks".

Under coach Staley, the Gamecocks improved or equaled their win total every season during her first seven years leading the program, culminating in a 34–3 record in 2014–15. That year they won the SEC regular season championship, the SEC Tournament championship and the NCAA East Region Championship. The season ended in the NCAA Final Four with a last second one-point loss to Notre Dame in the national semifinals.

The following year, the Gamecocks went undefeated in conference play, only to be stymied in the Sweet 16 by Syracuse. In 2016–17, the Gamecocks garnered their third straight sweep of the SEC regular season and tournament titles en route to their second Final Four. They defeated conference rival Mississippi State in the national championship game to win their first-ever national title.

In the 2018 SEC tournament, the Gamecocks defeated Mississippi State to win the SEC tournament, South Carolina is the only team to win the SEC tournament for four straight years. Their season came to an end when they were defeated by Connecticut in the Elite Eight.

In 2020, South Carolina finished 32–1 (16–0), led by the #1 ranked recruiting class and senior leadership of point guard Tyasha Harris. The Gamecocks defeated 14 ranked teams including their first-ever victory over UConn, and won both the SEC regular season and tournament titles. South Carolina won their final 26 games of the season and spent the final nine weeks as the AP #1 ranked team. Dawn Staley was named national coach of the year, and Aliyah Boston was named national freshman of the year, and SEC defensive player of the year. When the COVID-19 pandemic ended the season prematurely on March 12, South Carolina was ranked at the top of the AP and coaches' polls. Due to the unprecedented abrupt ending to the season following the SEC Championship win, Staley said they should be claim the mythical national championship, with the program making a claim through the size and location of the banner highlighting finishing #1 in the polls on December 31, 2020, at the 2020–21 conference season opener. As of the 2022–23 season, that banner size is identical to the two official championship banners, and located between the official championship banners. In 2021, the team reached the Final Four, losing to Stanford by a point.

On April 3, 2022, the Gamecocks won their 2nd national title with a 64–49 win over UConn, finishing the season 35–2 and being ranked #1 in both major polls for the entire season. Aliyah Boston won Player of the Year, and Dawn Staley was named Naismith Award winner as the best coach in the nation for 2022.

On February 18, 2024, South Carolina set a record for winning 43 straight SEC victories.

Current roster

2023–24 South Carolina Gamecocks women's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown
G 0 Paopao, Te-HinaTe-Hina Paopao 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) Sr La Jolla Country Day   Flag of California.svg
Oregon Oregon Ducks logo.svg
Oceanside, CA   Flag of the United States.svg
F 2 Watkins, AshlynAshlyn Watkins 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) So Cardinal Newman   Flag of South Carolina.svg Columbia, SC   Flag of the United States.svg
G 5 Johnson, TessaTessa Johnson 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) Fr St. Michael-Albertville   Flag of Minnesota.svg Albertville, MN   Flag of the United States.svg
C 10 Cardoso, KamillaKamilla Cardoso 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) Sr Hamilton Heights   Flag of Tennessee.svg
Syracuse Syracuse Orange logo.svg
Montes Claros, BR   Flag of Brazil.svg
PG 12 Fulwiley, MiLaysiaMiLaysia Fulwiley 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) Fr Keenan   Flag of South Carolina.svg Columbia, SC   Flag of the United States.svg
G 20 Feagin, SaniaSania Feagin 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) Jr Forest Park   Flag of Georgia (U.S. state).svg Ellenwood, GA  Flag of the United States.svg
F 21 Kitts, ChloeChloe Kitts 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) So DME Academy   Flag of Florida.svg Oviedo, FL  Flag of the United States.svg
G 23 Hall, BreeBree Hall 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) Jr Wayne   Flag of Ohio.svg Dayton, OH   Flag of the United States.svg
G 25 Johnson, RavenRaven Johnson 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) So Westlake   Flag of Georgia (U.S. state).svg Atlanta, GA   Flag of the United States.svg
C 35 Walker, SakimaSakima Walker 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) Jr Columbus Africentric   Flag of Ohio.svg
Rutgers Rutgers Scarlet Knights logo.svg
Columbus, OH   Flag of the United States.svg
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Current redshirt

Roster
Last update: November 18th, 2021

Head coaches

Name Years Seasons Games Won Lost Pct.
Pam Backhaus 1974–1975
1976–1977
2 56 26 30 .464
Frankie Porter 1975–1976 1 22 7 15 .318
Pam Parsons 1977–1981 5 144 101 43 .701
Terry Kelly 1982–1984 3 82 50 32 .610
Nancy Wilson 1985–1997 13 380 231 149 .608
Susan Walvius 1998–2008 11 325 165 160 .508
Dawn Staley 2008–present 16 546 440 106 .805
All-Time 51 1555 1020 535 .656

2024 Coaching Staff

Name Position Seasons at South Carolina
Dawn Staley Head coach 16th
Lisa Boyer Associate head coach 16th
Jolette Law Assistant coach 7th
Winston Gandy Assistant coach 1st
Khadijah Sessions Assistant coach 1st
Mary Wooley Assistant coach 1st
Reference:

Year-by-year results

Conference tournament winners noted with # Source

Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason Coaches' poll AP poll
Pam Backhaus (Independent) (1974–1975)
1974–75 Pam Backhaus 18–12 (.600) AIAW Region II
Frankie Porter (Independent) (1975–1976)
1975–76 Frankie Porter 7–15
Frankie Porter: 7–15 .318
Pam Backhaus (Independent) (1976–1977)
1976–77 Pam Backhaus 8–18 SCAIAW
Pam Backhaus: 26–30 (.464)
Pam Parsons (Independent) (1977–1982)
1977–78 Pam Parsons 24–10 AIAW Region II
1978–79 Pam Parsons 27–10 AIAW Region II
NWIT Champions
15
1979–80 Pam Parsons 30–6 AIAW Third Place 4
1980–81 Pam Parsons 13–17 AIAW Region II
1981 Pam Parsons 7–0
Pam Parsons: 101–43 (.701)
Terry Kelly (Independent, Metro) (1982–1985)
1982 Terry Kelly 16–8 NCAA Sweet Sixteen
1982–83 Terry Kelly 16–12
1983–84 Terry Kelly 18–12 7–3
Terry Kelly: 50–32 (.610) 7–3 (.700)
Nancy Wilson (Metro, SEC) (1984–1997)
1984–85 Nancy Wilson 18–10 8–3 T–1st
1985–86 Nancy Wilson 19–11 9–1 1st NCAA first round
1986–87 Nancy Wilson 18–12 8–4 3rd
1987–88 Nancy Wilson 23–11 10–2 1st NCAA second round 24
1988–89 Nancy Wilson 23–7 10–2 1st NCAA first round 22 17
1989–90 Nancy Wilson 24–9 13–1 1st NCAA Sweet Sixteen 16 19
1990–91 Nancy Wilson 22–9 12–2 1st NCAA first round
1991–92 Nancy Wilson 13–15 2–9 12th (SEC)
1992–93 Nancy Wilson 17–10 5–6 T-6th
1993–94 Nancy Wilson 14–13 2–9 T-10th
1994–95 Nancy Wilson 12–15 1–10 T-10th
1995–96 Nancy Wilson 16–12 2–9 T-11th
1996–97 Nancy Wilson 12–15 1–11 T-11th
Nancy Wilson: 231–149 (.608) 83–69 (.546)
Susan Walvius (SEC) (1997–2008)
1997–98 Susan Walvius 13–15 3–11 T-11th
1998–99 Susan Walvius 11–16 0–14 12th
1999–00 Susan Walvius 13–15 3–11 11th
2000–01 Susan Walvius 11–17 6–8 T-6th
2001–02 Susan Walvius 25–7 10–4 T-2nd NCAA Elite Eight 6 13
2002–03 Susan Walvius 23–8 9–5 T-5th NCAA second round 18 16
2003–04 Susan Walvius 10–18 1–13 12th
2004–05 Susan Walvius 8–21 2–12 12th
2005–06 Susan Walvius 17–12 7–7 7th WNIT Second round
2006–07 Susan Walvius 18–15 6–8 T-7th WNIT third round
2007–08 Susan Walvius 16–16 4–10 T-9th WNIT second round
Susan Walvius: 165–160 (.508) 51–103 (.331)
Dawn Staley (SEC) (2008–present)
2008–09 Dawn Staley 10–18 2–12 11th
2009–10 Dawn Staley 14–15 7–9 T-7th
2010–11 Dawn Staley 18–15 8–8 T-5th WNIT second round
2011–12 Dawn Staley 25–10 10–6 T-4th NCAA Sweet Sixteen 21 25
2012–13 Dawn Staley 25–8 11–5 T-4th NCAA second round 14 17
2013–14 Dawn Staley 29–5 14–2 1st NCAA Sweet Sixteen 8 8
2014–15 Dawn Staley 34–3 15–1 1st NCAA Final Four 3 4
2015–16 Dawn Staley 33–2 16–0 1st NCAA Sweet Sixteen 3 5
2016–17 Dawn Staley 33–4 14–2 1st NCAA Champions 1 3
2017–18 Dawn Staley 29–7 12–4 T-2nd NCAA Elite Eight 6 7
2018–19 Dawn Staley 23–10 13–3 2nd NCAA Sweet Sixteen 13 15
2019–20 Dawn Staley 32–1 16–0 1st Canceled due to Covid-19 1 1
2020–21 Dawn Staley 26–5 14–2 2nd NCAA Final Four 4 6
2021–22 Dawn Staley 35–2 15–1 1st NCAA Champions 1 1
2022–23 Dawn Staley 36–1 16–0 1st NCAA Final Four 3 1
2023–24 Dawn Staley 38–0 16–0 1st NCAA Champions 1 1
Dawn Staley: 440–106 (.806) 199–55 (.783)
Total: 1020–535 (.656)

      National champion         Conference regular season champion         Conference tournament champion
      Conference regular season and conference tournament champion       Conference division champion

Postseason results

NCAA Division I

Year Seed Round Opponent Result
1982 #3 First round
Sweet Sixteen
#6 East Carolina
#2 Kentucky
W 79–54
L 69–73
1986 #7 First round #10 Middle Tenn L 77–78
1988 #8 First round
Second round
#9 Alabama
#1 Texas
W 77–63
L 58–77
1989 #6 First round #11 Tennessee Tech L 73–77
1990 #5 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
#12 Bowling Green
#4 Northwestern
#1 Washington
W 93–50
W 76–67
L 61–73
1991 #7 First round #10 Vanderbilt L 64–73
2002 #3 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
#14 Liberty
#6 Cincinnati
#7 Drake
#1 Duke
W 69–61
W 75–56
W 79–65
L 68–77
2003 #5 First round
Second round
#12 UT Chattanooga
#4 Penn State
W 68–54
L 67–77
2012 #5 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
#12 Eastern Michigan
#4 Purdue
#1 Stanford
W 80–48
W 72–61
L 60–76
2013 #4 First round
Second round
#13 South Dakota State
#12 Kansas
W 74–53
L 69–75
2014 #1 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
#16 Cal St Northridge
#9 Oregon State
#4 North Carolina
W 73–58
W 78–69
L 58–65
2015 #1 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
#16 Savannah State
#8 Syracuse
#4 North Carolina
#2 Florida State
#1 Notre Dame
W 81–48
W 97–68
W 67–65
W 80–74
L 65–66
2016 #1 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
#16 Jacksonville
#9 Kansas State
#4 Syracuse
W 77–41
W 73–47
L 72–80
2017 #1 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
National Championship
#16 UNC Asheville
#8 Arizona State
#12 Quinnipiac
#3 Florida State
#2 Stanford
#2 Mississippi State
W 90–40
W 71–68
W 100–58
W 71–64
W 62–53
W 67–55
2018 #2 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
#15 North Carolina A&T
#10 Virginia
#11 Buffalo
#1 Connecticut
W 63–52
W 66–56
W 79–63
L 65–94
2019 #4 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
#13 Belmont
#5 Florida State
#1 Baylor
W 74–52
W 72–64
L 68–93
2021 #1 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
#16 Mercer
#8 Oregon State
#5 Georgia Tech
#6 Texas
#1 Stanford
W 79–53
W 59–42
W 76–65
W 62–34
L 65–66
2022 #1 First round
Second round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
National Championship
#16 Howard
#8 Miami
#5 North Carolina
#10 Creighton
#1 Louisville
#2 Connecticut
W 79–21
W 49–33
W 69–61
W 80–50
W 72–59
W 64–49
2023 #1 First round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
#16 Norfolk State
#8 South Florida
#4 UCLA
#2 Maryland
#2 Iowa
W 72–40
W 76–45
W 59–43
W 86–75
L 73–77
2024 #1 First round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
National Championship
#16 Presbyterian
#8 North Carolina
#4 Indiana
#3 Oregon State
#3 NC State
#1 Iowa
W 91–39
W 88–41
W 79–75
W 70–58
W 78–59
W 87–75

Conference Tournament History

South Carolina has played in the Southeastern Conference since the 1997–98 season. The Gamecocks have won 8 tournament titles, all under Head Coach, Dawn Staley.

Year Seed First Round Second Round Semifinal Final
Southeastern Conference
2005 #12 #6 Ole Miss
50–53
2006 #7 #10 Auburn
48–64
2007 #8 #9 Auburn
65–63
#1 Tennessee
63–81
2008 #10 #7 Florida
57–71
2009 #11 #6 Mississippi State
39–49
2010 #8 #9 Ole Miss
63–64
2011 #5 #12 Ole Miss
63–50
#4 Georgia
34–66
2012 #6 #11 Alabama
57–38
#3 Georgia
59–55
#2 Tennessee
58–74
Year Seed First Round Second Round Quarterfinal Semifinal Final
Southeastern Conference
2013 #5 #13 Alabama
77–35
#4 Texas A&M
52–61
2014 #1 #9 Georgia
67–48
#4 Kentucky
58–68
2015 #1 #9 Arkansas
58–36
#4 LSU
74–54
#2 Tennessee
62–46
2016 #1 #9 Auburn
57–48
#5 Kentucky
93–63
#3 Mississippi State
66–52
2017 #1 #8 Georgia
72–48
#4 Kentucky
89–77
#2 Mississippi State
59–49
2018 #2 #7 Tennessee
73–62
#3 Georgia
71–49
#1 Mississippi State
62–51
2019 #2 #10 Arkansas
89–95
2020 #1 #9 Georgia
89–56
#5 Arkansas
90–64
#2 Mississippi State
76–62
2021 #2 #7 Alabama
75–63
#3 Tennessee
67–52
#4 Georgia
67–62
2022 #1 #8 Arkansas
76–54
#4 Ole Miss
61–51
#7 Kentucky
62–64
2023 #1 #8 Arkansas
93–66
#4 Ole Miss
80–51
#3 Tennessee
74–58
2024 #1 #9 Texas A&M
79–68
#5 Tennessee
74–73
#2 LSU
79–72

NCAA Tournament Seeding History

The following lists where the Gamecocks have been seeded in the NCAA tournament.

Years → '82 '86 '88 '89 '90 '91 '02 '03 '12 '13 '14 '15 '16 '17 '18 '19 '21 '22 '23 '24
Seeds → 3 7 8 6 5 7 3 5 5 4 1 1 1 1 2 4 1 1 1 1

National Championships

Year Coach Opponent Score Record
2017 Dawn Staley Mississippi State Bulldogs 67–55 33–4
2022 Dawn Staley UConn Huskies 64–49 35–2
2024 Dawn Staley Iowa Hawkeyes 87–75 38–0
National Championships 3

Conference Championships

Year Overall Record Conference Record Coach Conference
1986 18–11 9–1 Nancy Wilson Metro
1988 23–11 10–2 Nancy Wilson Metro
1989 23–7 10–2 Nancy Wilson Metro
1990 24–9 13–1 Nancy Wilson Metro
1991 22–9 12–2 Nancy Wilson Metro
2014 29–5 14–2 Dawn Staley SEC
2015 34–3 15–1 Dawn Staley SEC
2016 33–2 16–0 Dawn Staley SEC
2017 33–4 14–2 Dawn Staley SEC
2020 32–1 16–0 Dawn Staley SEC
2022 35–2 15–1 Dawn Staley SEC
2023 36–1 16–0 Dawn Staley SEC
2024 38–0 16–0 Dawn Staley SEC

AIAW Division I

The Gamecocks made two appearances in the AIAW National Division I basketball tournament, with a combined record of 6–3.

Year Round Opponent Result
1973 First round
Consolation First round
Consolation Second round
Consolation third round
East Stroudsburg State
Lehman
UC Riverside
Kansas State
L, 59–66
W, 58–53
W, 49–36
L, 57–69
1980 First round
Second round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
Third-place game
USC
Northwestern
Stephen F. Austin
Tennessee
Louisiana Tech
W, 81–60
W, 64–61
W, 63–56
L, 72–75
W, 77–69

Attendance

Over the years, the Gamecocks have played in three different venues. At first games were played at the Blatt P.E. Center. Later games moved to the Carolina Coliseum, which saw the first sell out for a women's basketball game on January 17, 2002. That day, 12,168 fans turned out to see the South Carolina Gamecocks take on the Tennessee Lady Vols.

On November 22, 2002, the Gamecocks opened the newly constructed Colonial Life Arena (then known as Carolina Center; the arena's deal with Unum was signed a year later) would be with $1 admission night, leading to a crowd 17,712 saw the Gamecocks defeat the archrival Clemson Lady Tigers. The first sell out with 18,000 in attendance occurred on February 8, 2016, against the University of Connecticut Huskies in a match up of the two top ranked teams in the country.

Crowds of over 16,000 at Colonial Life Arena for Women's Basketball games:

Date Attendance Opponent Result
02-18-2024 18,478 Georgia W 70–56
02-11-2024 18,167 UConn W 83–65
03-03-2024 18,000 Tennessee W 76–68
02-04-2024 18,000 Ole Miss W 85–56
01-28-2024 18,000 Vanderbilt W 91–74
02-26-2023 18,000 Georgia W 73–63
02-12-2023 18,000 LSU W 88–64
02-20-2022 18,000 Tennessee W 67–53
03-01-2020 18,000 Texas A&M W 60–52
02-10-2020 18,000 UConn W 70–52
03-03-2019 18,000 Mississippi State L 68–64
02-01-2018 18,000 UConn L 58–83
02-26-2017 18,000 Kentucky W 95–87
02-08-2016 18,000 UConn L 66–54
11-22-2002 17,712 Clemson W 72–58
01-11-2015 17,156 Kentucky W 68–60
11-16-2023 16,820 Clemson W 109–40
11-13-2015 16,815 Ohio State W 88–80
01-02-2015 16,465 Auburn W 77–58
12-06-2015 16,429 Duke W 66–55
02-28-2016 16,240 LSU W 75–39
02-18-2016 16,186 Georgia W 61–51
12-06-2023 16,181 Morgan State W 104–38
11-12-2023 16,007 Maryland W 114–76

South Carolina has led the nation in attendance every season since 2014–15, with the exception of 2020 which was limited due to COVID. The Gamecocks have averaged over 10,000 fans in 92 consecutive regular season home games.

Year Games Overall W–L Overall Win Pct NCAA W–L NCAA Win Pct Total Attendance (SEC/Nat Rank) Avg Attendance (SEC/Nat Rank)
2014–15 16 16–0 1.000 2–0 1.000 196,684 (1st/1st) 12,293 (1st/1st)
2015–16 17 16–1 0.941 2–0 1.000 244,196 (1st/1st) 14,364 (1st/1st)
2016–17 16 15–1 0.938 2–0 1.000 196,431 (1st/1st) 12,277 (1st/1st)
2017–18 17 15–2 0.882 2–0 1.000 225,064 (1st/1st) 13,239 (1st/1st)
2018–19 17* 13–4 0.765 2–0 1.000 176,904 (1st/2nd) 10,406 (1st/1st)
2019–20 15 15–0 1.000 0–0 183,272 (1st/1st) 12,218 (1st/1st)
2020–21 11 10–1 0.909 0–0 Covid Attendance Covid Average
2021–22 16 16–0 1.000 2–0 1.000 196,286 (1st/1st) 12,268 (1st/1st)
2022–23 17 17–0 1.000 2–0 1.000 220,010 (1st/1st) 12,941 (1st/1st)
2023–24 17 17–0 1.000 2–0 1.000 273,133 (1st/1st) 16,067 (1st/1st)
Totals 159 150–9 0.943 16–0 1.000 1,911,980 12,897

* The 2019 NCAA Tournament games were played in Halton Arena, Charlotte, NC

  • The 2021 NCAA Tournament games were played in the bubble at the Alamodome, San Antonio, TX

Notable players

Gamecocks drafted to the WNBA

Player Draft Seasons Notes WNBA Champion WNBA MVP Finals MVP Rookie of the Year All-Star Game All-Star
Shannon Johnson 1999 – Orlando 11 (1999–2009) Orlando, Connecticut, San Antonio, Detroit, Houston, Seattle 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003 1999, 2000, 2002
Shaunzinski Gortman 2002 – 9th by Charlotte 5 (2002–2006) Last with the Seattle Storm
Jocelyn Penn 2003 – 9th by Charlotte 2 (2003–2004) Last with the San Antonio
Tiffany Mitchell 2016 – 9th by Indiana 8 (2016–Present) Indiana Fever, Minnesota
Alaina Coates 2017 – 2nd by Chicago 5 (2017–Present) Chicago, Minnesota, Indiana, Atlanta, Washington, Phoenix, Las Vegas 2023
Allisha Gray 2017 – 4th by Dallas 5 (2017–present) Dallas Wings, Atlanta 2017 2023
Kaela Davis 2017 – 10th by Dallas 5 (2017–Present) Dallas, Atlanta, Chicago, Seattle, Phoenix
A'ja Wilson 2018 – 1st by Las Vegas 6 (2018–Present) Las Vegas 2022, 2023 2020, 2022 2023 2018 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023
Mikiah Herbert Harrigan 2020 – 6th by Minnesota 2 (2020–Present) Minnesota, Seattle
Tyasha Harris 2020 – 7th by Dallas 4 (2020–Present) Dallas, Connecticut
Destanni Henderson 2022 – 20th by Indiana 2 (2022–Present) Indiana, Los Angeles, Phoenix
Aliyah Boston 2023 – 1st by Indiana 1 (2023–Present) Indiana 2023 2023
Laeticia Amihere 2023 – 8th by Atlanta 1 (2023–Present) Atlanta
Zia Cooke 2023 – 10th by Los Angeles 1 (2023–Present) Los Angeles
Brea Beal 2023 – 24th by Minnesota 1 (2023–Present) Minnesota, Las Vegas
Victaria Saxton 2023 – 25th by Indiana 1 (2023–Present) Indiana

Also drafted:

  • Teresa Geter – 2002 – 36th by Washington
  • Petra Ujhelyi – 2003 – 16th by Phoenix
  • Aleighsa Welch – 2015 – 22nd by Chicago

Retired jerseys

South Carolina has retired four jersey numbers.

No. Player Career
13 Martha Parker 1985–1989
14 Shannon Johnson 1992–1996
25 Tiffany Mitchell 2012–2016
53 Sheila Foster 1978–1982

Player and coach awards

National player awards

National coach awards

  • Naismith College Coach of the Year
Dawn Staley – 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024
  • WBCA National Coach of the Year
Dawn Staley – 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024
  • AP Coach of the Year
Dawn Staley – 2020, 2024
  • USBWA Women's National Coach of the Year
Dawn Staley – 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024

Conference awards

* Denotes Co-Player / Co-Coach

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